io9 recently had the opportunity to sit down with How to Train Your Dragon filmmaker Dean DeBlois to discuss his role as the steward of the beloved dragon franchise, a joint production of DreamWorks and Universal Pictures. During our conversation, we touched on the excitement of seeing Gerard Butler reprise his role as Stoic, Hiccup’s father, and explored the possibility of other actors reprising their roles or making cameo appearances in live-action films, including original stars Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, and Cate Blanchett.
DeBlois shared with io9 his hopes that Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett will reprise her role as Valka in the upcoming live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon 2. He expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “We are keeping our fingers crossed,” although he noted that it’s still early in the process, as he is currently working on the script.
For fans of the animated film, the potential return of Blanchett to the franchise in such a pivotal role is a significant deal. The revelation in the sequel that Hiccup’s mother, Valka, who is mentioned several times in the first film, is alive serves as a major plot twist, escalating the stakes in the story, which takes place five years after the events of the first film.
Similar to Gerard Butler, Cate Blanchett could effortlessly slip back into her role, delivering another unforgettable performance in the fantasy genre, following in the footsteps of her iconic roles as Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings and Hela in Thor: Ragnarok. However, it’s worth noting that Blanchett has recently expressed her desire to retire from acting, telling Radio Times last month that she has stopped referring to herself as an actress: “It’s because I’m giving up… My family roll their eyes every time I say it, but I mean it. I am serious about giving up acting. [There are] a lot of things I want to do with my life.”
As for the original Hiccup and Astrid, Jay Baruchel and America Ferrera, their potential return would likely be limited to a cameo appearance, given that they are now older than the characters they originally portrayed. For the live-action movie, the roles of Hiccup and Astrid were recast with Mason Thames and Nico Parker, respectively.
DeBlois commented, “We’ll see what happens. Jay and America have been really supportive; in fact, they weighed in on the casting when I was down to my top three Astrids and Hiccups. I shared them [with Jay and America], just to hear what they had to say, so they’ve been super supportive,” DeBlois said. “But I think for their schedules, it just wouldn’t work out for this movie, but maybe in the future.”
The live-action How to Train Your Dragon film is set to release on June 13.
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